Universal this morning dropped a major bombshell of a press release, unveiling new experiences that will start this summer and continue on throughout the end of the year and into 2018 – a string of new attractions that will further Universal Studios Hollywood’s unprecedented transformation that started back in 2014 with the arrival of Super Silly Fun Land.

Christmas at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

Let’s get the biggest surprise out the way first, shall we?

Following last month’s major announcement of a summer Harry Potter projection show, Universal has revealed that Universal Studios Hollywood will also be getting the same Harry Potter Christmas event that has already been confirmed for Universal Orlando Resort. Expect to see brand-new, in-depth Christmas decorations festooned all over Hogsmeade, along with some seasonally-exclusive food and drink options – but the real show-stopper here, naturally, will be yet another projection-mapping show, which will transform Hogwarts Castle into a Yuletide experience.

The wizarding festivities kick off in November 2017.

DreamWorks Animation Theater

As we originally reported last month, Shrek 4D will be closing on August 13 and will reopen next summer as the DreamWorks Animation Theater. Designed to look and feel like a “classic Hollywood theater,” this new venue will sport a rotating cast of attractions that will star – you guessed it – all of DreamWorks’s animated roster, starting with Kung Fu Panda (and, presumably, eventually including all of the intellectual properties that will have already been featured at the close-by dance show).

DreamWorks Theater featuring Kung Fu Panda at Universal Studios HollywoodExpect to be taken on “a journey through storytelling” that utilizes “state-of-the-art projection mapping and LED lighting effects” – in other words, something of a cross between the Hogwarts Castle shows and the original Shrek 4D.

DreamWorks dance jam

Starting well before Christmas at the Wizarding World will be a brand-new daily summer dance jam beginning June 30th, which will occur at the Universal Plaza and which will star a whole host of DreamWorks Animations characters. Guests will be able to have dance-offs against familiar faces from such properties as Shrek, Madagascar, How to Train Your Dragon, Trolls, and Kung Fu Panda – and then to meet-‘n-greet with them afterwards, of course.

This still-unnamed show will begin sometime this summer, presumably by the end of the month.

Hello Kitty

Finally, filling out the roster of new experiences will be Hello Kitty, who will join the park’s various meet-‘n-greet characters starting sometime next year – and who will also adorn a whole bevy of exclusive merchandise.

Hello Kitty Store at Universal Studios FloridaNot much has been announced just yet, but we wouldn’t be surprised if the items came straight out of the Hello Kitty Store at Universal Studios Florida, which opened in early 2016.

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Marc N KleinhenzMarc N. Kleinhenz’s first dream in life was to be an astronaut. His second was an Imagineer. While neither completely worked out, he now is the editor and podcast co-host for Orlando Informer. He’s also written for 32 other sites (including Screen Rant, IGN, and The Escapist), has had his fiction featured in several publications, and has even taught English in Japan. Imagineering school won’t be too far behind.